Reiki Resources
Laws that Affect a Reiki Practitioner
Although being a Reiki Practitioner and giving Reiki treatments to the public does not come under a specific Act of Parliament there is legislation that applies to someone setting up business and offering a service to the public.
The Privacy Act 2020
The Privacy Act 2020 provides principles that guide the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. If you collect information about your clients then this Act applies to you.
- Collection – Information cannot be collected unless it is relevant to the reason for collection. For example, if a driver’s licence is not required, questions relating to a client having a driver’s licence should not be asked.
- Direct request – Information should always be asked directly of the applicant unless the applicant gives permission otherwise. It is not appropriate to ask for information about a client from third party sources without the client’s consent.
- Storage – Information must be stored in such a way that it is secure and will not be disclosed to third parties.
- Disclosure – Information about a client cannot be disclosed to third parties without the client’s permission unless legislative exception applies, i e., the Police.
Health and Safety at Work Act 2015
This Act basically says you must ensure your working environment is safe for yourself, your staff and your clients.
You should have a fire procedure outlining what you would do if there is a fire in your working environment. This includes an evacuation procedure – how people are to leave the building, where they meet outside the building and how you would check to make sure everyone has left the building. You should also ensure that there are no obstacles or barriers that could cause an accident. Where you work and where clients enter and leave should be safe.
Covid-19 Public Health Response Act 2020
Orders under this Act are changing frequently. Please regularly review the guidance on the Ministry of Health NZ website – https://covid19.govt.nz/business-and-money/
The Fair Trading Act 1986
Applies to anyone in trade, prohibiting them from misleading or deceptive conduct. There have been cases that natural therapists were heavily fined because they claimed their particular modality or therapeutic goods they sell CURED certain conditions. Natural therapists and their organizations must be very careful for the wording of their promotional materials. It’s safe to say ‘Reiki assists…’ or ‘Reiki supports…’ When using testimonials to endorse a business it is important to retain evidence that the testimonial is genuine and independent. For further information refer to the Commerce Commission website on https://www.comcom.govt.nz
Other legislation
Other legislation that may be relevant to you includes The Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 and The Medicines Act 1981 (if you resell therapeutic goods). You should also consider legislation such as Copyright Act 1994, Employment Contracts Act 1994, Income Tax Act 1976, Land Transport Act 1993, Smoke Free Environments Act 1990, etc.
To learn more about these laws, go to http://www.legislation.govt.nz
Scientific Research into Reiki
Over thirty peer-reviewed, scientific studies into the efficacy of Reiki have been conducted since 1989, with more appearing in the literature every year. The majority of these studies have reported positive outcomes associated with Reiki and there have been no reports of any negative effects. The results of these studies are summarised on The Center for Reiki Research website and report evidence for the alleviation of pain, depression and anxiety for a variety of conditions. Although this research field is still largely in its infancy, it is developing rapidly. In the USA, there are currently over 44 Integrative Medical centres seeking to conduct more high-quality research in the field of energy medicine within academic institutions.
Research to date has investigated the use of Reiki for coronary care, stroke rehabilitation, fibromyalgia, pre-operative anxiety, post-operative pain, depression, stress and practitioner well-being. This research consistently supports the efficacy of Reiki for use in stress management and depression. In the most recent study, Reiki was demonstrated to have therapeutic effects comparable to regularly prescribed drugs in coronary care patients. Studies into the effect of Reiki on cancer patients have found that Reiki treatment improved tolerance to pain, reduced fatigue and anxiety, and generally improved their quality of life. Other studies report a reduction in pain and anxiety associated with invasive procedures, such as endoscopy and abdominal hysterectomy. Reiki was not found to improve fibromyalgia symptoms or stroke rehabilitation in preliminary trials. Reiki NZ Inc members can access an academic paper on the members’ page by NZ Reiki student and PhD Candidate Margarita Lyulicheva, ‘A review on the effectiveness of Reiki in clinical practises for cancer patients’ (2020).
Reiki is currently used in hospitals in the UK and the USA, to reduce pain, fatigue, pre-treatment anxiety for surgical, chemotherapy or radiotherapy treatment, and to improve post-operative recovery in the case of surgical interventions.
Websites
The International Center for Reiki Training is an American organisation set up by William Lee Rand to facilitate access to high quality training resources. Go to https://www.reiki.org
The Center for Reiki Research summarises the results of the latest scientific studies into Reiki. There is also a members only Resource Page which is accessible via the Members Login at the bottom of the Home Page – https://centerforreikiresearch.com
Pamela Miles has a page on her website summarising a number of peer-reviewed academic papers into Reiki. Go to https://reikiinmedicine.org/medical-papers/
International Reiki Discussion Groups
Circle of Scholars – An interdisciplinary group of doctoral-level academics exploring a range of topics. To register go to https://reikihome.org/events/